Pulitzers explained: How they started, who has won the most

The 2019 Pulitzer Prize winners will be announced at 3 p.m. ET Monday, April 15, at Pulitzer.org. Check out these facts about the highest award in journalism.

Who was Joseph Pulitzer?

Joseph Pulitzer was born in Hungary in 1847. He came to the United States as a young man and served the Union during the Civil War. He would go on to become the publisher of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and the New York World. He set out plans for the awards in his will.

Library of Congress

Who awards the prizes?

More than 100 judges serve on 20 juries and make nominations in 21 categories. The Pulitzer Prize Board includes editors, columnists and professors. In early April the board meets for two days and decides on the awards. The Pulitzers are best known for honoring journalism, but they also give out awards for literature and music.

Dennis Van Tine/Abaca Press

How does one submit for consideration?

Submissions open up in December for works made in that year. About 1,100 journalism entries are submitted by the Jan. 25 deadline, according to the prize's website.

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When was online journalism added?

In 2006 online content was allowed in all categories, and in 2009 online-only news organizations became eligible.

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Who designed the medal?

The Pulitzer Prize medal was designed by Daniel Chester French (the sculptor who made the statue of Lincoln at the Lincoln Memorial) and Henry Augustus Lukeman in 1918. One side of the medal shows Benjamin Franklin. The other side shows a printing press being operated and features the words “For disinterested and meritorious public service rendered by an American newspaper during the year." On the Franklin side, the name of the organization that won the award is engraved.

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How much money is awarded?

While only publications that win the public service category get a medal, winners of every other category receive $15,000.

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How many categories are there?

There are currently 14 categories within the journalism prizes and seven other prizes in the fields of literature and music.

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Has a U.S. president won a Pulitzer?

John F. Kennedy is the only U.S. president to win a Pulitzer, although he won it before he was president in 1957 for his book “Profiles in Courage,” a series of short biographies of U.S. senators.

UTA Special Collections/Star-Telegram Collection

Who has won the most?

Carol Guzy (pictured), a photographer for the Washington Post, is the only journalist to have won four Pulitzer Prizes, but there are others who have won that many in categories outside of journalism, including poet Robert Frost and playwright Eugene O'Neill.

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Which publication has won the most?

The New York Times has won 125 Pulitzer Prizes.

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Who was the first woman to win?

The first woman to win a Pulitzer was Minna Lewinson in 1918. She was also the first woman to work at the New York Times.

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Who was the first rapper to win?

In 2018 Kendrick Lamar became the first hip-hop artist to win a Pulitzer Prize in music with his album "DAMN.”

Star Tribune

'Spotlight'

Two major motion pictures have been based on Pulitzer-winning journalism. "Spotlight" chronicles the Boston Globe's coverage of sexual abuse in the Catholic Church that earned the paper a Pulitzer in 2003. "Spotlight" won Academy Awards for best picture and best original screenplay.

Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times

'All the President's Men'

Another movie inspired by Pulitzer-winning journalism was "All The President's Men," which starred Dustin Hoffman and Robert Redford and told the story of the Washington Post investigation of Watergate, earning the paper a Pulitzer in 1973.

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'Hamilton'

"Hamilton," the musical by Lin-Manuel Miranda, won a Pulitzer Prize for drama in 2016. The musical was largely inspired by a biography written by Ron Chernow, who won a Pulitzer in 2011 for his biography of George Washington.

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